Please note: Information in this archived discussion may not be the most current information available. Please see the Upgrading to Ning 3.0 FAQs page for the most recently updated information.
Fall is here, and for us over at Ning HQ that means gearing up to release round one of the upgrade toolset. Many of you have already spent some time familiarizing yourself with the new platform, surfacing bugs, developing tips, and otherwise helping us to improve Ning. What’s next? Upgrading to the new platform, of course!
The Basics
If you elect to upgrade your network sooner rather than later, your experience will be something like this: Create and design your Ning 3.0 community (Tip: Take us up on our offer for a free Sandbox Network), then tell Ning when you’re ready to port your members and content over. We’ll run the importer tools from behind the scenes, validate that everything has transferred, and notify you when your new community is all loaded up and ready to go. Note that this import process will not affect members and content on your Ning 2.0 community.
After the import is complete, you and your network administrators can take your time to verify that all the content is there and well arranged, adjust the viewer and contributor settings, and publish the pages. Flip the switch when you’re ready. No hassle. No downtime. Totally risk free.
When you activate your upgrade, members (and all site traffic) will be forwarded to the Ning 3.0 community. In the earliest phase, this will be accomplished via a domain redirect. If you have a custom domain, you’ll just need to adjust the domain mapping. Soon after the initial release of the upgrade toolset, it will be possible for a network to keep its same subdomain.
During the first phase of the upgrade process, we will focus on importing your members, as well as all possible content and its related metadata, tags, comments and likes. This initial process will be closely managed by Ning’s Advocacy Team to ensure that all the bits and pieces transfer over and the import runs smoothly.
As the toolset is completed, it will include additional controls that allow the Network Creator to set rules for what types of content to import. The final phase will be push-button, totally controlled by the Network Creator, and will support multiple filters that let a community owner select which types of content are imported.
Supported Content Items
- Members (member categories and roles, settings and credentials, friends, badges, path)
- Profile Questions and answers
- Messages (inbox, archives, sent)
- Blog (posts, comments, metadata, tags, path)
- Forum (categories, discussions, replies, metadata, tags, attachments, path)
- Photos (tags, description, comments, metadata, path)
- Groups (description, image, forum, pages, path); plans to support the comment wall
- Videos (tags, description, comments, metadata, path); will be supported when Videos 3.0 is released
- Custom Pages
- Default profile photo
- Network Icon
- File Manager
- Email domain and IP blocking
- Subdomain (via renaming)
Unsupported Content Items
- CSS, custom code, scripts, and Scripts4Ning
- Text boxes
- RSS feeds
- Media uploaded to the music player
- Language files
- Language edits made using the Language Editor
- Comments on Pages
- Virtual Gifts
- Ning Apps
- Historical Activity Feed content
- A member’s individual profile page customization including theme, layout, RSS widgets, and Virtual Gift balance
How It Works
Each feature will be imported into your Ning 3.0 Network as a new, unpublished page in the unlinked section of Site & Pages. The default viewer and contributor type will be set to Members, and the default comment type will be standard and set to allow HTML. We will preserve URL structure by defaulting the path type for each feature to match its Ning 2.0 equivalent (e.g., /profiles/blogs/). This will minimize any negative impact to SEO and should help to reduce member confusion.
The time it takes to complete the upgrade process will vary depending on how many members and how much content you choose to transfer. Your existing community will not be impacted during the upgrade; there will be no downtime and members will still be able to login and create content as usual. We will allow for “topping off” in the event that additional content is created on your Ning 2.0 community while you are in the process of upgrading. Additionally, we will have a validation process in place to ensure that all expected content has been successfully copied over to your new community.
We will be approaching the upgrade process in three phases. Each phase is outlined for you below and expanded upon over on our FAQs page.
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|
Phase One |
Phase Two
|
Phase Three
|
|
Type |
Managed by Ning’s Advocacy Team, by request |
Self-service |
Simplified and automated |
|
Requirements |
Ning 2.0 Network, pre-existing Ning 3.0 Network (Sandbox ok) |
Ning 2.0 Network, pre-existing Ning 3.0 Network (Sandbox ok) |
Ning 2.0 Network (Not a requirement, but content may still be imported into an existing Ning 3.0/Sandbox) |
|
Membership |
All members, member data will transfer |
All members, member data will transfer |
All members, member data will transfer |
|
Content |
All possible content |
All possible content. |
All possible content |
|
Filters |
None |
Simple filters (e.g., import only active members, import only recent blog posts) |
Advanced filters (e.g., only import blog posts in x, y, and z categories) |
|
Domain |
Permanent redirect, option to switch subdomain when this feature becomes available |
Option to retain Ning 2.0 subdomain or use the new Ning 3.0 subdomain |
Option to retain Ning 2.0 subdomain or apply a new subdomain |
|
Option to Top Off |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Preparing For Your Community’s Ning 3.0 Makeover
Get acquainted with Ning 3.0! If you aren’t one of the 555 Network Creators already in The Sandbox, we encourage you to take advantage of our offer for a free Ning 3.0 Sandbox network and launch v3 of your community in stealth mode. Start to design your new network – choose a theme, color scheme, font, background, and upload assets like a header image and logo. Consider implementing a second or third Forum, test out some of your existing CSS and custom code, and visit Ning 3.0 Tips and Tricks for ideas on how to customize your new community.
Remember, there is no need to recreate any existing feature or content item. During the upgrade process, existing content will be imported into new feature instances. In the later phases, it will be possible to map content from your 2.0 Network to a particular place on your 3.0 Network, but it will always be simpler if you refrain from duplicating content like blog posts and discussions.
For more information on the upgrade process, visit our FAQs.
Replies
To avoid confusion, this thread is being closed. Please refer to the Product Roadmap and Announcements from Ning for the most recent progress on Ning 3.0.
If you are a 2.0 Network Creator interested in migration or setting up your 3.0 network, please join The Sandbox group.
Hi,
I just had time now to integrate my self in this subject.
As a creator and user of ning for now 2 years, I also would like to leave my opinion and show my worries about this subject.
The Ning 2.0 is not perfect and there are thing that can be improvement. But there some feature that is the base of by network that with that those it will not working. First at all is the Events and then the Photos, Videos and Groups. I read above and you didn't mention nothing about the Events.
Other thing is the Language editing. I'm using a language that is not support in the Ning: Portuguese (PT). And the Portuguese existent now is the Brazilian and there are a lot of the content that is badly translate, and so I have to do it manually. And even so there some words I cannot change, like for example when a membre leave the network in english we say "Left" so in Portuguese is "Sairam". But it appears "Restam" and this means "Remaining".
I also use text box, this is also very important
So for my network migrate to ning 3.0, you must guarantee at least the same conditions I have now, and that included the features i mention.
The other thing very important and that concern me is that you are suggesting that we upgrade to a version that is lower that I'm using now, and the price is almost the double. Now I'm pay 150€/per year and to upgrade you want 264€/per year, so more 114€ per year. So with this new prices that is outrage, I'm thinking on moving to others that offer what i have now and at least the same price I have now.
So questions:
Kind Regards,
Alexander, whilst I agree that there are still some creases to iron out regarding the new Ning platform, I can assure you that it is in fact extremely popular amongst a great many people, It just depends what threads you follow really, if you follow negative threads you will read negative comments, I follow both as I feel that I get a much more balanced view of the general feel of the new platform.
Check this out https://creators.ning.com/faq/upgrading-to-ning-3#mydomainname
It explains quite a lot of stuff that appears confusing at first.
Kind Regards
Toni
@Toni
My feeling is- Take as long as you need, Ning, but please, just get it right .
1) Don't make us longterm customers have to give up so many features we and our network members love and use daily, 2) don't make us have to recode so much of it ourselves just to make it look even halfway decent, and 3) don't tell us to turn to 3rd party outside solutions for features you have decided you will no longer provide just because it's cheaper and easier for you. Because at certain point many people will just throw up their hands, bite the bullet, and move to a free Facebook platform, or pay something and auto-migrate their members to BuddyPress, where they include more widgets, elegant templates, choices, and control.
I'd much prefer to wait until 2015 sometime and be able to smoothly move into a feature-rich, well designed, time-tested new 3.0 platform that purrs like a kitten, than be forced by some premature 'deadline' to migrate in 2014 into a rushed-through/ugly/glitchy/lesser platform. Ning- if you take your time and do it right, it'll be worth the wait and your current 2.0 longterm customers will be less worried and upset.
The biggest mistake of all was for Ning to roll out 3.0 as an actual full priced 'product' and foist it upon all new customers from the very beginning, without giving them a choice, when it was more like a glorified overpriced blog...so embryonic as to be practically useless as a social networking platform. This caused so many new customers to be puzzled and unhappy as soon as they realized what they weren't getting for their money, that all the folks on 2.0 were getting. Whatever executive made that initial decision should have their head examined.
Despite the sloooow addition of Groups and messaging, this situation has continued for around 8 months now, so it's certainly understandable that Ning wants to rush things along as fast as possible. But rushing product development and completion all too often results in an inferior product, and that would be a very unfortunate high-stakes outcome here. All I'm saying is, forcing 2.0 owners to migrate prematurely to an inferior, poorly designed, or unfinished 3.0 might deal a death blow- a large exodus of longterm loyal 2.0 creators from Ning that it ultimately cannot recover from.
Ning, take your time. Make 3.0 great. Stop making date predictions and timeline promises you cannot keep simply to keep (justifiably) impatient people placated. It looks bad and ultimately makes people mad. Drop the whole 'migration deadline' edict for now, because it's obvious that things have, and will continue to take longer than you thought. Just keep working on 3.0 as best you can and make it wonderful. I'll wait. I want it to be great. :)
+1
I have to concur with many of the ning creators. Upgrading to 3.0 is not really an upgrade if you don't include all the features that we already use like RSS, videos, events, etc. More like a downgrade. I don't see myself "upgrading" anytime soon if ever, unless I get the same features my ning already uses.
Ning ask the company to create a page of photos , organized by date , and facilitates access the photos on the network , and not all are disorganized .
I mentioned a few months ago to my members that our platform would be changing and I had no choice. I didn't mention what company I was going with, I changed my annual subscription from annual to monthly and have done absolutely nothing in my 3.0 since I first set it up. I invited four members to play with it and they did for a week. Not since. I do not plan to do anything with 3.0 until everything is in place and that means that NING says everything that we will get is in place. Then I will make up my mind. I've found a few other platforms that will work...but I'd rather stay with NING. That does not mean I will.
Donna, that just about exactly where I am too.
I'm glad I have not made a bunch of announcements to my members about anything much yet. And I expect it will still be a ways off until I have to make a final decision.
This whole thing has put all of us NCs into a very stressful and uncertain position. Ning keeps 'talking the good talk'...but it seems all too often different from the reality. I don't like counting on ever-changing vague reassurances that seldom pan out, but unfortunately we are stuck between a rock and a hard place. I keep thinking if only Ning would quit talking about migration 'deadlines' and remove that awful pressure from us, if only they'd just keep working on 3.0 until it's complete and working well without hanging that 'deadline' over our heads...well then I'd be extremely relieved. If they simply would continue maintaining 2.0 until 3.0 is complete, for as long as that takes, with no deadlines until 3.0 is complete, then we wouldn't feel like sheep being herded towards a cliff. I'd be totally happy to wait for 3.0 until it's terrific...as long as my 2.0 is working fine like it is now. It's the ominous migration deadline that freaks me out...it's so premature.
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